Reigning in the Storm
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To Reign in Life mean’s we are winning when the storm is howling, not just when the sun shines.
When Jesus told his disciples to sale across the Sea of Galilee in Mark 4, He sallied himself and his followers right into the teeth of a furious squall. Surely God should not do this? With Him, shouldn’t we avoid the storms? N’huh! The storm becomes part of His kitbag to shape us for reigning.
Because whether the storm is one of our own making because of our poor choices and disobedience, or it’s a natural storm resulting from our fallen world, or it’s a demonically inspired storm, Jesus has it covered:
‘Jesus got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, “Quiet! Be still!” Then the wind died down and it was completely calm. He said to his disciples, “Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?”’ Mark 4:39-40
You can hear my message on this episode at http://livinggrace.org.uk/audio, but here Iet me draw out this important message:
- Let God set the agenda: God knows what you need and what is important. Sometimes the storm seems to distract us from what we see as vital. But God can work through the storm to invest in you now and and your future. Jesus, with his mission to the lost sheep of Israel, suddenly veers off to a mainly Gentile area (you don’t get many pig herds in Jewish areas!). He sails through a storm, lands, delivers a demonised man, steps back in the boat and sails back to his main mission. What was the point?
I don’t exactly know, but I suggest this: when the demons pleaded with Jesus they said ‘ Please don’t send us out of this area’. Or as other Gospels say, into the Abyss. This Gerasenes area was their domain, their area of control. It was a stronghold through which they held sway in the region, maybe even with the ability to generate the storm in an attempt to stop the Son of God from coming (Jesus rebuked the storm - literally ‘muzzled’ - in the same way he would rebuke demons and demonically inspired sickness in people). Jesus dethroned this power, then got back in the boat and sailed back to His people (notice, no alarms on this leg of the journey!), where His ministry went up a notch - for example, delivering and healing women for the first time in His ministry.
Sometimes the storms we are in are a result of the enemy kicking off becuase a stronghold is about to come under attach and be destroyed, resulting in you being propelled to a new place of power, joy and effectiveness. We may not even have registered this stronghold as an issue, but God knows. When we see the storm this way, and in the other ways I outlined yesterday, we see how we can reign in life even in the storm. We stop looking at ourselves and begin to look to God, who is King over the storm.
in the end it comes down to trust. Do we trust God? Jesus did. His disciples didn’t. If your storm has dislodged your peace, silenced your worship, inspired disobedience or damaged relationships, then it speaks of a lack of trust. Repent, Realign, and Resume your life of trust in a wonderful, faithful Papa God.
